iPod family updated

It must have felt a bit lonely being an iPod recently. The neglected middle child of the Apple ecosystem has felt increasingly isolated – dare we say irrelevant? – as Tim Cook’s team has surged on with developing virtually every other Apple device.

But that’s all changed now that the Cupertino firm has updated the iconic iPod family, both in terms of looks and hardware.

The iPod touch gets the lion’s share of the updates with a meaty upgrade to its camera, taking its resolution from 5MP to 8MP and bringing it in line with the iPhone 6. Further improvements to the camera include a new image processing chip and slow-motion video capture, as well as the inclusion of burst mode for shooting multiple frames in quick succession.

Apple’s fitness drive also translates to the iPod touch thanks to the introduction of an M8 motion co-processor, which will allow you to track your fitness and elevation on the move.

That’s not all – Apple has also included a speedy new 64-bit A8 chip in the iPod touch to ensure its new features run smoothly, and to future-proof it for upcoming iOS updates.

Most of the new hardware features are exclusive to the iPod touch. However, all iPod models – touch, shuffle and nano – get five new colour schemes, including space grey, blue, gold, pink and silver. There’s also a special (PRODUCT)RED edition, with Apple donating part of the purchase price to the global fund to fight AIDS in Africa.

Will this be enough to rejuvenate the iPod line and restore to glory one of the most iconic Apple devices? We’ll have to wait and see.